For the first time in a long time, the Knicks will be entering a season with legitimate expectations of making a playoff push.
New York went 47-35 in the regular season, pulled a bit of an upset over the Cavaliers in the first round, but fell short against the Heat in the second round. Jalen Brunson broke at as a star in his first season with the Knicks, Julius Randle made his second All-NBA team as a Knick, and numerous young players took big step forwards last season.
In the loss against the Heat, Randle struggled mightily, but as a team the Knicks' inability to space the floor was exposed over and over again by the Heat. The Knicks had a lot of flexibility in the offseason to makes moves to to bolster the roster, but overall it ended up being a fairly quiet offseason.
Additions and Subtractions
The biggest move New York made over the offseason was bringing in free agent guard Donte DiVincenzo to a four-year, $47 million contract. To do this, the Knicks sent Obi Toppin to the Pacers for two second round picks which cleared the necessary cap space. The other big move was Josh Hart picking up his player option, and eventually signing a four year, $81 million extension to remain in New York.
DiVincenzo profiles as the backup shooting guard to Quentin Grimes. He will provide a very similar playstyle to Grimes as he plays high level perimeter defense, while also providing solid three-point shooting. He shot the best percentage of his career with the Warriors this past year at 39.7 percent. It appears the Knicks will continue to utilize a nine man rotation with Immanuel Quickley, DiVincenzo, Hart and Isaiah Hartenstein as the bench.
There could be a concern with size off the bench, as without Toppin there is not a true power forward in the second unit. However, Hart's ability to rebound and hold up defensively against larger opponents has proven to be reliable for the Knicks, and will allow New York to run smaller and more athletic lineups.
Knicks Show Trust In Their Core
It may not have been the flashiest offseason for New York, but there is reason to believe that this young Knicks team should continue to improve from within. Quickley had by far his best season as a pro. He averaged a career high in points, improved massively on the defensive end, and finished second in Sixth Man of the Year voting.
RJ Barrett will be entering his fifth NBA season, still the young age of 23. Barrett had a bit of an inconsistent regular season as he averaged 19.6 points per game, however he struggled with his shooting percentages. He did have a much improved postseason run, and was clearly the second best player for New York in their run. It feels like he's been in the league for a while now, but at only 23 there is reason to believe there is still another step for Barrett to take.
Contrary to Barrett, Randle struggled mightily during the playoffs after putting up the best regular season of his career. Randle had a difficult time making the right decision against a Heat defense that showed him a multitude of different looks. This issue is one that will remain to be dealt with until the postseason, as Randle has proven himself in the regular season, but for the Knicks to make noise in the playoffs it will depend on Randle exorcising his playoff demons.
The player most important to New York's success will be their best player, Brunson. In his first season as a Knick, Brunson developed from a very good to an elite point guard in the league. After January 3rd, Brunson averaged an astonishing 27.9 points on 52 percent shooting. He was by far the best player for New York in the playoffs, and singlehandedly won two games off of the Heat in the playoffs.
The biggest issue for the Knicks in standing pat for the most part with their roster may come from the moves their eastern conference rivals did make. The Bucks made the splash of the offseason by acquiring Damian Lillard, while the Celtics traded for Jrue Holiday and former Knick Kristaps Porzingis.
New York will get the chance to see the new look Celtics in the first game of the season Wednesday night in Boston.
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- Knicks lose Julius Randle for remainder of season as playoffs approach - April 6, 2024
